Dwarven mage

Yeah, I know it'll be difficult as hell to get it done properly, but being as how this has been running through my head for ages, I figured I should get some opinions on it.

First off, I figure the most intelligent thing to do as a dwarven mage would be to invest heavily in constitution, given that I've read somewhere spells cost double fatigue for dwarves. Obviously I will invest in willpower as well.

Secondly, I was wondering what colleges would work best. I was thinking maybe Necromantic Black for the Harm spell and Necromantic White for the healing, but and/or Force.

Does anyone have any suggestions? You know, aside from not even trying this, that is.

 

Spam harm, obviously.

 

Also no matter what spells you choose, be sure to boost your Magic Aptitude as high as possible (100 is recommended), so the damage per fatigue point factor will be best possible.

Since fatigue is a great factor, you may be interested in obtaining the K'An-el amulet (Constitution +4) or the N'Tala amulet (Strenght +1, Constitution +1, heal rate + 50%, yet never going above the maximum of heal rate 6).

On the contrary, go for it. Challenges make things worth trying.

 

This thread is long dead, but if you're going to truly participate, I say go ahead and dig it up.

 

I have never been able to find either of those amulets in any of my playthroughs. Would you mind telling me where, at the least, the K'An-el amulet is?

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I've started my dwarven mage. I've named him Halvar and he's got Necromantic Black and Summoning colleges so far. I plan on adding Force at some point.

You guys have any tips on how to get him up to 100% magickical aptitude? I find I'm only getting a few points for each spell I learn.

 

I always was a fan of giving Virgil the Sword of Air and unleashing him upon... well, himself. He usually did a wonderful job of butchering his feet, but it made me feel like he was contributing. My point in bringing this up is that, as memory serves, you can get that sword from the Wise Women, and it rocks.

 

That's nothing unusual, since most characters don't stumble upon those items. They are unique and were supposed to be encountered in quite special situations.

N'Tala amulet:

Spoiler

It's weared by Myrth, the elf in Stillwater who the location of Quintarra with you. The only way to obtain that object is by stealing it or taking it from his dead body.

K'An-el amulet:

Spoiler

It's weared by Fawn, the healing master in Quintarra. There are three ways to obtain this object: stealing it, taking it from her dead body or becoming a healing master, in which case, after training you, she gives you the amulet.

The magic smiths in Tarant and Caladon have a seven times greater chance of having that sword in their stock than the wise women (70% compared to 10%). I never actually used it, though. It's parameters didn't seem to make it that unusual, or am I mistaken?

 

Potions that restore fatigue and potions that cut it's use in half. Also, carry as many arcane staves as you safely can, using meatbags to carry yet more.
I found that after my dwarf mage got to around level 18, being a magickal eunuch was nolonger an issue, especially after metagaming to Tulla and gaining mastery.

 

I dissuade from metagaming, since it kills a part of the game. Arcane staves are hard to get and expensive once they appear, requiring 100 MA to work at their full power. However you can buy of mage's staves at magical stores, they there almost every day, they require moderate magical power for 100% efficiency, and when you have several of them, they restore mana quicker than you use it. I personally try not to abuse this mechanism, since it feels like cheating, but it's always there if you want to take advantage of it.

 

I dissuade from general "How do I build my character?" threads for the very same reason. If players have specific questions about specific items or mechanics, that's a different matter. Otherwise, play the game and figure your build out yourself.

This thread is exempt because by I expect that by default one cannot metagame a dwarven mage.

 

Well, I can honestly say that this is a far better response than I thought I would get, so thanks for that!

I've found the N'Tala amulet. Had to kill the unlucky bastard, as my mage fails at pickpocketing even with a fate point being used, for some reason.

I'll be sure to try and find that Dark Helm once I feel confident I won't be butchered by the zombies in the castle.

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The only metagaming I've done so far, aside from getting that amulet, is acquire Dog early on. I got him before I even went to Tarant.

It may be cheap to metagame, but in this instance, I'm not above it.

 

Metagaming is not for me. Not that it matters really, as long as one is enjoying oneself.

Especially with a story-heavy game such as Arcanum, metagaming seems like it's just begging for spoilers. That would be game breaking in this case!

That said, there has been some worthwhile hints dropped in this thread that have been general enough not to spoil anything.

 

I was speaking of myself, not suggesting he do it. After playing the game through 100+ times, the only thing that kills it for me is the all too often crashes....and lack of toilets.

The first few times I played the game, I never knew I could get Dog.

 

Verily, if one is too slow on the draw, Dog becomes dog meat.

 

Oh Hey! I get that! That's a Fallout Reference!

 

Well that's a bizarre fail. With a fate point a cripple can steal a platemail of a guard without him noticing it. The only reason than comes to mind which could explain your problem is you having a pickpocketing follower who attempts to steal for you and fails because the fate point doesn't count for him.

He dies too quickly if you would ask me. I always take my time when in a city. When I get to Ashbury I don't rush through town searching for dying dogs, I go all "Ow look palmtrees! Virgil, look, there's a flying lighbulb! Pretty!", so if not for the Internets, I would never new there was a Dog follower. I rarely even got across the dog corpse (it's not that on the way), and once I did I saw him, resurrected him and all I got was something around "Woof!". "The hell...?" I though and left the scene, with all my ignorance.

 

Yes I remember getting that dog back when I played the game just when it came out. I think the reason I saw the dog was because I was wandering around not knowing what to do. This time , after having not played for so long, I forgot about the dog and ended up finding it dead. It had been so long that I figured it was some bug or monster that ran into town until I read up on here that it was a follower and remembered that I once had the dog.

 

The main thing that's cool about the Sword of Air is that it doesn't weigh very much if your magickal aptitude is high enough.

I think it does 5-20 damage.